Grain door installing tool



March 13, I956 w. c. CROSS 2,738,160

GRAIN DOOR INSTALLING TOOL 7 Filed April 30, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I v

g llllllllllllllllll lNVENTOR. WALDO C. CROSS March 13, 1956 Filed April 30, 1952 W. C. CROSS GRAIN DOOR INSTALLING TOOL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. a

AF F FIG. IO

INVENTOR.

WALDO C. CROSS T RNEY United States Patent GRAIN DOOR INSTALLING TOOL Waldo C. Cross, Trenton, Nebr.

Application April 30, 1952, Serial No. 285,267

1 Claim. (Cl. 25479) This invention relates to the installation of grain doors in grain cars, and in particular to the installation of a type of door that is constructed from cardboard or heavy kraft paper or the like. The present invention is concerned with a tool or accessory that is adapted to improve the performance of such doors by assuring an effective and uniform tightening of the individual narrow metal strips which form part of such grain doors and are stretched in the door opening of the car as a reinforcement for the above-type door, such strips being furnished in substantially standard lengths and preformed with a plurality of aligned apertures at either end for the reception of nails or equivalent fastening elements.

As a type of door construction for grain cars there has come into general use a door comprising a plurality of panels of cardboard or kraft paper or the like which are arranged in overlapping vertical relation in the door opening. Such panels would, in and of themselves, be relatively weak, and consequently such grain doors embody horizontal steel strips associated with the cardboard or paper in a reinforcing relation, and being adapted to be secured in a tight or stretched relation horizontally from one side of the door opening to the other, such strips being about three-fourths inch wide and arranged in vertical spaced relation to one another about three to six inches apart, depending on the type or kind of door. After the reinforcing strips are thus arranged and nailed in place in and across the door opening, the edges of paper-board panels are fastened in place to complete the door construction.

It has been found by users of such door fabrications that it is desirable that the aforesaid narrow metal strips be uniformly tightened in order to reduce the likelihood of damage to, or rupturing of, the door during use. In the past, two methods have been proposed for attaining this condition as nearly as possible. In one method, two

workmen arrange the strips in place, one assuring that the strips or hands are properly stretched, While the other performs the operation of nailing the loose end of the strip to the corresponding side of the door opening, the other end having been previously fastened as a preliminary operation. According to the other method, one end portion of each metal strip is bent slightly outwardly at about a 30 angle so that it does not rest flush against the side of the car immediately adjacent the door Opening, and after the other or opposite end has been nailed in place in a preliminary operation, the strip as a whole is tensioned slightly by anchoring the thus-bent end to the corresponding side adjacentthe door opening by means such as nails driven into such side in perpendicular relation to the bent-end, it being appreciated that the nails, as in other cases, extend through suitable apertures formed in a line at either end offthe metal strip. Such tensioning as thelatt er is characterized by the nails at the bent end of thestrip being anchored to the car at an angle of 30 removed from normal, and while being 2 driven in at such an angle the strip as a whole is tensioned as the inherent result of the operation.

Both of the two methods outlined above have serious disadvantages. Neither is capable of establishing a uniform stretch or tension among all the strips, and in addition the first method requires the use of two workmen. Moreover, the metal strips are thin and the sides and edges thereof are relatively sharp and sometimes rough so that lacerations of the skin often occur during the time that the strips are being handled while being nailed or otherwise fastened across the door opening. The primary object of the present invention, then,.is to apply the proper slight tension to each reinforcing strip while the same is being anchored in place for the purpose described and to establish a uniform stretch among all such strips. An additional object of the present invention is topermit the application of a uniform stretching of the metal strips to a predetermined degree, and this by a means that eliminates the need for the workman to handle the relatively sharp metal strip during the final stage of installation. A further object of the present invention is to afford a novel tool that is adapted to improve, simplify and insure uniformity in the installation of fabricated grain doors of the above type.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and claim and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the principle thereof and what I now consider to be the best mode in which I have contemplated applying that principle. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principle may be used and structural changes may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the present invention and the purview of the appended claim.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a door construction showing an embodiment of the present invention as being used therewith;

vFig. 2. is a detail perspective view, broken away, of a portion of the embodiment of the present invention shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of an enlarged scale of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is an elevation similar to Fig. 4 but showing the device in a difierent position of operation;

Fig. 6 is an elevation similar to Fig. 5 but showing the device in yet another position of operation;

Fig. 7 is a top plan view taken on the line 77-of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a fragmental sectional view on an enlarged scale taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a fragmental sectional view on an enlarged scale showing the top of the post member of the present device; and Fig. 10 is a fragmental horizontal sectional view showmg the manner in which the door construction is to be completed after the reinforcing strips have been properly stretched.

The tool or accessory 20 shown in the drawings to illustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention, is adapted to be detachably fixed in position, adjacent one side of the door opening D0 provided in the grain car, with an angled post 21 thereof aligned vertically with respect to the side SC-L of the car adjacent the left side of the door opening, Fig. 1 being viewed from the inside of the grain car. A grain door is shown extending across the door opening DO, and this door comprises a cardboard panel P with a plurality of spaced narrow metal strips or bands, S-l, S2, S-3, S-4, S- associated therewith in a reinforcing relation and disposed in horizontal relation, the, lower two strips having already been anchored by nails as H at either side of the door opening D0 in Fig. 1, the upper two strips being illustrated as having been secured or nailed at the right ends or sides only, and the middle strip S3 being shown as having been secured at the right end and indicated as being operated on at the left-end by the device of the present invention. The card-board-like panel P has a front F, two side flaps LF and RF, and a bottom i'lap BF, such side flaps eventually to be nailed to the respective sides SC-L and SCR of the door opening and over the corresponding ends of the metal strips S, while the bottom fiap is to be nailed to the floor PC of the grain car to complete this much of the door construction. Assuming a normal load to be placed in the car, it will be seen that in this respect the reinforced panel P may itself function as a door when the flaps are thus secured to the car, assuming that the metal strips have all been anchored to the sides SC-L and SC-R to effectively reinforce the panel I.

Mounted for sliding movement on the post 21 is a strip tightening or tensioning means which takes the form of a toggle mechanism TM. The post 21 is provided with a plurality of notches as N-l, N-2, N3, N-4 and N-S, each notch corresponding in a vertical position to a reiated one of the metal strips S in that the notches N are spaced apart from each other a distance equal to the spacing between the strips S in the door opening. The notches N represent supports or abutments for locating the toggle mechanism TM relative to the strip S to be stretched. It is the toggle mechanism TM that in the present instances accounts for a uniform stretching of the metal strip S as the free ends of each of these strips, as for instance the free end of the strip S3, are fastened adjacent the left side SC-L of the door opening. As was noted above, the metal strips S are of uniform size and are provided with openings SO, Fig. 4, arranged in a horizontal row at either end of the strip for receiving the shanks of double headed nails H.

The vertically disposed post 21', upon which the toggle mechanism may slide during use and may be locked in position to stretch and tension slightly a particular strip as the strip S-3, consists of two, elongated side members 22 and 23 disposed substantially at right angles to one another. Mounting brackets as 24 are secured to the side member 22, being formed with apertures to receive fasteners as double-headed nails H for temporarily securing the post 21 to the inside of the grain car in the position best indicated in Fig. 1. When properly located in operative position, the side member 23 is aligned vertically in relation the left jamb of the door opening DO, the notches or supports N formed in the member 23 being representative of the spacing between the left or loose ends of the strips S that are to be stretched across the door opening.

Closure plates 25 are provided at either end of the post 21 so that the latter appears as a vertically disposed trough. Extending axially and substantially centrally of this trough is a rod 26 formed at one end with a cap 27, Fig. 2, that is adapted to abut against the bottom closure plate 25. The other end of the rod 26 projects through the top plate 25 and is apertured to receive a cotter pin 28 that, together with cap 27, maintains the rod 26 in the aforesaid trough. The rod 26 fulfills the function of a guide for the toggle mechanism.

The toggle mechanism comprises a manually operable lever which may be moved from a vertical to horizontal position to control the mechanical advantage movement of a pair of toggle links 41 and 42, and during such movement forces are effective to stretch and impart an automatically adjusted tension to theparti'cularstri'p S that is being worked on. As viewed in Figs. 4, 5 and 6 stretching ofthe selected strip S occurs as the handle or lever 35 is being turned in a clockwise direction in a vertical plane. The stretching or tensioning action of the toggle is a yielding one, taking place against the action of a spring 45 as will be described below, and the spring 45 automatically compensates or accommodates what slight discrepancies may be present either in the lengths of the strips S and/or in the location and disposition of the post 21 as related to the free ends of the strips S to be fastened. The spring 45 also allows for freedom of movement that otherwise would not be present during the time that the toggle is being moved from one position to another on the guide 26.

Considering the elements of the toggle in. detail, a slide 30, disposed to be parallel to the handle 35 when the latter is extended vertically, encircles the rod 26 and is adapted to move freely vertically thereon and to be turned freely thereabout within limits. When the post 21 is temporarily fastened to the inside of the grain car as noted hereinabove, the slide. 30,, as will be appreciated from the description to follow, in efiect fixes one end of the toggle TM. Integral with the slide 30 is an arm 31 that projects therefrom, and this arm is of a diameter to fit into the notches N to properly align the links of the toggle TM. Thus, as indicated in the drawings, arm 31 is shown as located, in a notch N-3 that is disposed directly opposite and in alignment with the strip 8-3 which is to be stretched and slightly tensioned in accordance with the. present invention. As the description proceeds, it will be apparent that in reality the arm 31 represents an extension of the link 41 of the toggle TM, the spring 45 amounting to a. yielding quality or element of this link.

The lower end of the manually operable handle 35 is bifurcated or yoked at 3637, Fig. 7. One end of the link 41 is provided with a pin 41U and the opposite ends of this pin are journaled in the bifurcation 36 and 37 of the lever 35. The. other end 41L of the link 41 is apertured; and receives a corresponding end of the spring 45. Similarly, the end of the spring 45 away from link 41 is hooked through an opening at the end 31R, Fig. 5, of the arm 31 which is opposite to the slide 30. Thus, as shown in Fig. 6, the axes of the spring 45, the arm 31, and the links 41 and 42 are aligned in a general horizontal direction when the toggle is tightened or closed. On the other hand, link element, 41 is generally disposed at right angles to these other elements when the toggle is open as in Figs. 1 and 4.

One end of the link 42 is also formed with a pin, in this case 42U, that is journaled in, and adjacent the open end of, the bifurcation 36--37. The end of the link 42 away from the pin 42U is hook-shaped as at 42H, Fig. 3, and, this hook is adapted to be hooked through one or another of the openings SO atforded adjacent the opposite ends of the strips S, as the openings SO in the strip S3, Fig. 3. In this connection, it will be observed that the hook 42H is bent outwardly, that is, at right angles to the handle 35 as viewed in Fig. 4. Thus, it will be seen that by means of the two pin connections 41U and 42U the handle 35 pivotally interconnects the respective links 31 45-41 and 42 of the toggle mechanism TM so that when handle 35 is vertically disposed these links are loose or expanded and define a rather large acute angle as shown in Fig. 4. On the, other hand, when handle 35 is disposed generally horizontallyas in Fig. 6, the links are closed and substantially aligned to close the operating angle.

In use, the post 21 of the device 20 is detachably fastened adjacent the door opening D0 in the manner noted hereinabove and is spaced from the jamb of the opening DO a distance which approximates that which experience has shown to be, best suited to a proper stretching and tensioning of. the metal reinforcing strips S. The right end of eachv strip, say of the. strip 8-3, is first fastened in position at the. rightside. S.C.-R of he car by means as. th uble-headed nails. H. The. toggle mechan sm. TM. is, of course, open and loose, and arm 31 is disposed parallel tothe plane of the side member 23 of the post 21 so that the same may be moved along the guide rod 26 until this arm is disposed opposite the notch N-3 that is related to the strip S3 to be stretched to a lightly tensioned condition just prior to fastening the other end of the side SC-L of the car. When the arm orlink element 31 is thus dis posed, the same is turned inwardly toward the side of the car and into a locked position within the confines of the notch N-3. Subsequently, the loose end of the strip 8-3 is brought into association with the hook 42H and the latter is hooked through an opening S0. The parts are then related as shown in Fig. 4, the toggle TM being open and spring 45, whichrepresents a tensionably yieldable link element, being untensioned.

Arm 31 being locked in the notch N-3 and hook 42H being hooked to the loose end of the strip S3, handle 35 may now be turned clockwise about the pin;41U from the position shown in Fig. 4 through the intermediate position shown in Fig. 5 to the closed position shown in Figs. 6 and 7. During such clockwise movement. of the handie 35, the initial effect is merely to straighten out the left link that is represented by the arm 31, spring 45, and link 41, as the handle 35 is moved toward a more horizontal position, until aposition is reached wherein further clockwise or downward movement of the handle 35 takes place against the spring or yieldable link element 45 and the latter is tensioned. This latter condition is illustrated in Fig. 5, and it will be observed that the link element 41 assumes a more acute angle in relation to the horizontal than the initial angle in Fig. 4 wherein the toggle mecha nism is open, such angle now gradually diminishing in size until nearly zero as in Fig. 6.

As the handle 35 continues to be pressed toward closed position, spring 45 is tensioned more and more as link 41 continues to be shifted and pulled downwardly, and the lower or open end of the bifurcation tensions, or exerts a thrust against, the pin 42U and pulls link 42 toward the left as viewed inthe drawings. Accordingly, strip 8-3 is stretched and straightened in the door opening and is placed under a slight tension when the toggle is finally closed as illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7. When the toggle is thus closed as represented by an aligned condition of the links, the loose but stretched end of the strip S-3 is thereupon fastened to the side SC-L as by'double headed nails H, Fig. 7. Since strip 8-3 is now secured at both ends, the toggle TM may be opened, and arm 31 disengaged from the notch N-3 and moved to the next position adjacent notch N-4 which is related to the next strip 8-4 to be stretched and tightened.

In order that the toggle mechanism may be self-locking, the links 41 and 42 are elbowed or bent as at 41B and 42B, respectively, Fig. 6. Also, the pins 41U and 42U are so related to one another that pin 41U is disposed slightly to the right of the pin 42U when the handle 35 is vertically disposed as shown in Fig. 4. The arrangement is such that when the toggle is forced to a closed position whereat the two links are substantially aligned, pin 41U is located slightly below pin 42U and the toggle thereby locked or at least restrained against any inadvertent opening.

Once spring 45 is placed under tension during closing of the toggle, it will be appreciated that the pins 41U and 42U will shift together, the first from left to right and the second from right to left as viewed in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, such shifting being of a yielding and resilient quality as conditioned by the spring 45. Since the spring 45 determines the ultimate tension that is applied to the successive strips, these strips are necessarily tensioned in a uniform manner.

Such fastening of the several strips serves to secure the paper-board panel P vertically across the door opening DO, and the flaps LF and RF are then extended in overlying relation to the fastened ends of the strips S. The

flaps of panel P are then fastened down as by nails H, Fig. 10, and the next panel to be assembled is located with its bottom edge overlapping the upper inner edge portion of panel P. This operation is repeated until a door of suitable height is afforded. After all the panels have been thus assembled, the door installation is finally completed by nailing down a lath as M, Fig. 10, to the side edges of the flaps as LP in vertical alignment therewith, and the other flaps are similarly fastened down in accordance with usual practice.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the tool or accessory of the present invention is adapted to apply a uniform tension and stretch to the individual reinforcing strips that comprise the type of door construction with which the present invention is concerned. The device may be accurately located in position for each operation, and this of course establishes a uniform spacing between the loose ends of the reinforcing strips that are to be nailed down. Moreover, the need to handle such loose ends, during the time that the same are to be anchored, is eliminated.

Thus, while I have shown and described the present invention from'the standpoint of one embodiment, this is capable of variation and modification, and I therefore do not wish to belimited to the precise details set forth, but desire to avail myself of such changes and alterations as fall within the purview of the following claim.

I claim:

A stretcher of a type to stretch individual strips across a door opening as reinforcements for panelled door construction to be afforded in the door opening, which strips are each to be first fastened at one end to one side of the door opening in vertical spaced relation to one another and then to be fastened at the other or loose end, comprising, an elongated guide adapted to be located in ver-- tical parallel relation to the opposite side of the door opening corresponding to said loose ends of the reinforcing strips, a series of spaced abutments arranged axially of the guide and corresponding in number to the reinforcing strips to be stretched across the door opening, said abutments being spaced apart from each other a distance corresponding substantially to the spacing to be established between adjacent reinforcing strips, said guide and said abutments being mounted on a common post member adapted to be fastened adjacent the said opposite side of the door openings, and a toggle mechanism for gripping the loose ends of each of the reinforcing strips and stretching the same across the door opening in condition to be fastened adjacent said opposite side of the door opening, said toggle mechanism comprising a pair of links one slidably mounted at one end on said guide and the other adapted at one end to be releasably connected to the loose'end of each of the reinforcing strips, the other ends of each of the links being pivotally connected in mechanical advantage relation to a manually operable lever, said one link being adapted to be located on one or another of said abutments to thereby dispose and support the toggle mechanism in proper stretching relation to a corresponding one or another reinforcing strip, said toggle mechanism having spring means associated therewith to limit the tensioning forces applied thereby and thus assure uniform tensioning of the strips of a grain door.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 816,032 Oertel Mar. 27, 1906 1,972,346 Juline Sept. 4, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS 703,739 France Feb. 10, 1931 310,048 Italy July 24, 1933 

